Guard to Protect Presidential Election [Opinion]

Most Americans know the National Guard is part of their community. Members of come from all walks of life and all nationalities. They range in age from 17 to 60.

Your National Guard consists of both Army and Air components. Some states also have a State  Guard component  which is deployed in state emergencies. Your Guard members have a federal mission and a state mission.

Lately , we have heard a lot about the troops being used in assisting state and local law enforcement in some cities and states. In that role, the Guard is under the control of the governors who are Commander in Chief of the troops while members are on a state mission.

Other examples of state control would be fire fighting on land and in the air, search and rescue, professional sporting events, and the COVID -19 missions to name a few.

The president will federalize the Guard at his discretion. Most Americans aren’t aware that the same troops they see responding to local emergencies in your towns, cities, counties , or states are the same troops sent to fight our nation’s wars. The facts are that the country can’t fight or execute global missions today without the Guard’s nearly 500,000 members.

Turns out America can’t protect the Presidential election of 2020 without the troops either. Don’t expect the Guard to turn out in combat gear at your polling place. No tanks, trucks, or Hummers will be rolling into town.

The Guard is protecting our election integrity using small cyber security teams. This time they will defend against Chinese or other nations or other bad guys trying to compromise our elections. These teams are already active in 30 of our states. Apparently, the Guard’s cyber security teams are in high demand.

The cyber threat is more that what we saw by Russians in 2016, this time it is the Chinese and even domestic bad actors.

America’s threats  aren’t just  land, sea, and air anymore. The cyber threat is real and the Guard is helping with cyber security for our Presidential election.

So, as America’s media has us focused on Vote By Mail, Absentee Voting, or voting at polling places, we can rest assured that your National Guard Cyber Security Teams are on duty and working with our election official’s to protect our election process and keep America’s republic safe and secure. Once again the Guard lives up to its motto: “Always Ready, Always There!”